HUTCHINSON, Kan. — A Hutchinson-area man who entered pleas in two drug distribution cases, avoiding a jury trial, was sentenced Friday afternoon to nearly 12 years in prison.
Bryan Butler entered pleas in the two cases to several felony charges including two counts of possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute.
In one case, Butler and Jennifer Ramsey were busted on Sept. 10, 2014, after the Reno County Drug Unit served a search warrant at a home where the two lived and found a large plastic bag of a crystal substance that field tested positive for meth, about 345 grams worth. Also in the bag was a loaded Smith & Wesson handgun and a small amount of suspected marijuana weighing about four grams. They also found other drugs and around $1,600 in cash. The home was within a thousand feet of Reno County Early Head Start. He was free on bond when he was arrested in the second case.
That was back to May 27, 2014, when he was arrested and charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to sell, possession of drug paraphernalia with intent to distribute and no tax stamp. He attempted to distribute at least 100 grams of methamphetamine. The arrest came during a traffic stop in the 100 block of North Plum in the middle of the afternoon.
With the roughly 12-year sentence, he will get credit for time served in the jail while waiting for this case to be resolved. That could knock the sentence down by a year and a half or so.
He was also ordered to pay restitution to the KBI for lab testing on the drugs, which comes to over $3,000.